Phillies Shut Out By Rangers 2-0

The script for the Phillies today was the same it has been for a month. Great starting pitching and little to no offense. The Phils only scored five runs over the first two games, but Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay held the Rangers to only two total runs. Roy Oswalt basically matched those performances today with a seven inning, one run effort, but it wasn't enough as the Phillies offense failed to show up again.

Despite the fact that the Rangers sent a very pedestrian pitcher to the mound, Matt Harrison, with his 4.27 ERA and 30/23 K/BB ratio, the Phillies still couldn't muster a run. Harrison gave up only five hits over 8 1/3 innings of work. Of course, Harrison isn't the first ordinary pitcher that the Phillies' dreadful offense has made look good over the past month.

Help could be on the way however, as Chase Utley has returned to Philadelphia. He hasn't been added to the Phillies roster, but that appears to be something that will happen very soon.

Cliff Lee only got two runs worth of support tonight and that was all he needed as the lefty struck out 10 and gave no runs over innings for his first win in six starts. Ryan Madson came on in the ninth for his ninth save. This was the Phillies’ seventh shutout of the season, which leads the majors.

It was really an odd night in many ways for Lee. He actually stole a base in the bottom of the fifth when the Phils had runners on the corners. The Rangers weren’t holding him on and no one appeared to be covering second, so he just took the base.

“They weren’t holding me on and Colby wasn’t really paying attention to me,” Lee said of his steal. “Shane (Victorino) started yelling at me from the dugout to take off and I was already thinking it so I went.”

In the third, the opposing pitcher Colby Lewis lined a pitch right off Lee’s shoulder, the ball popped in the air, Jimmy Rollins grabbed it and fired it to first for the out. The trainer trotted out to check on him, but Lee just waved him off.

The lone Phillies runs came off a Ryan Howard solo shot in the second which broke and 0-23 streak and a John Mayberry RBI single in the sixth.

Roy Oswalt takes the hill tomorrow as the Phillies go for the sweep.

(Sports Network) – The Texas Rangers are finally playing in another game that Cliff Lee is starting. The only problem is that he is wearing a Philadelphia Phillies uniform.

Lee faces the Rangers for the first time since helping the club reach the World Series last year in the continuation of a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

Lee has been a man of many hats over the past few seasons. The former American League Cy Young Award winner was dealt by the Indians to the Phillies prior to the 2009 trade deadline and helped Philadelphia make it back to the World Series, where it lost to the Yankees.

The Phils then acquired Roy Halladay the following offseason, so they shipped Lee to Seattle to restock their farm system. The Mariners failed to compete, though, and dealt the Arkansas product to the Rangers before last season’s non-waiver trade deadline.

Lee went 4-6 with a 3.98 earned run average in 15 starts with the Rangers, who won the American League West for the first time since 1999, and with Lee’s help captured their first AL Pennant in team history before losing to the Giants in the World Series. The 31-year-old Lee went 3-2 in his five postseason starts with a 2.78 ERA, but lost both of his games in the World Series.

It was believed the pending free agent would either re-sign with the Rangers or join the Yankees, but the Phillies swooped in and signed him to a five- year, $125 million contract. Will that give Texas a little extra incentive to beat the southpaw tonight?

“You want to try to beat everyone, especially a guy that didn’t come back to your team,” Lee told the Phillies’ website. “I’m sure there’s some incentive for them to beat me. There should be. That’s the way it is. They try to win every game, and I’ve got to keep them from scoring.”

The left-hander takes the hill tonight looking for his first victory since April 14. He is 0-3 with a 3.66 ERA in six starts since and walked a career- high six batters in a loss to the Cardinals on Monday. He also gave up three runs on six hits over 6 1/3 innings and was not a fan of home-plate umpire Gerry Davis’ strike zone.

“I felt like I threw a lot of strikes that were called balls, but whatever, it is what it is,” Lee said. “I’m the pitcher and he’s the umpire, and it’s his job to call balls and strikes, and he felt like they were balls, I guess.”

Lee, who had walked just seven batters in his first eight starts, is 2-4 with a 3.84 ERA this season and 6-3 with a 5.55 ERA in 10 career starts versus the Rangers.

Lee may need to keep the Rangers off the scoreboard tonight as the Phillies haven’t scored more than three runs in seven straight games. However, they did pick up their second victory in that span with last night’s 3-2 win behind homers from Ben Francisco and Raul Ibanez, as well as eight innings of two-run ball by Halladay.

Still, the Phillies got just enough to beat Rangers starter C.J. Wilson, who struck out 10 over seven innings but gave up both home run balls.

“[Wilson] made two pitches I know he’d like to take back,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said.

Elvis Andrus scored a run when he stole home on a double steal in the first inning, but the Rangers still lost for the third time in four games and sit a half-game in front of the Angels for first place in the AL West.

The Rangers would love a repeat performance tonight from Colby Lewis, who hurled the first shutout of his career last time out. Lewis held the White Sox to just five hits and a walk, striking out seven in the 4-0 win, his second in a row and third in four starts. He has a 1.67 ERA in that span.

“The White Sox have a lot of talent up and down that lineup, so for Colby to come out in their ballpark and have that kind of effort was big for us,” said Rangers designated hitter Michael Young. “His last three or four starts have been fun to watch.”

The right-hander’s hot streak has evened his season record to 4-4 and lowered his ERA to a season-best 3.81.

The 31-year-old Lewis went 3-1 with a 2.57 ERA in four interleague starts last year and faces the Phillies for the first time.

Texas took two of three from the Phillies in the last meeting between the teams in 2008, three years after the Phils swept a three-game home set over the Rangers.

The Rangers went 14-4 versus the NL a season ago, while the Phillies were 10-8 in interleague play.

Roy Halladay gave up two runs over right innings while Raul Ibanez and Ben Francisco both homered as the Phillies took their first game of their interleague series against the Rangers 3-2.

Halladay got off to a rough start by his standards giving up two singles to start the game with runners at the corners. As he struck out Ian Kinsler for the first out of the inning, the Rangers executed a double steal and Carlos Ruiz threw for second to try and get Mike Moreland, but Elvis Andruws broke for home and was called safe when Wilson Valdez's throw back was late. Halladay would get out of the inning without giving up another run.

The Phillies scored their runs in an unfamiliar way, at least for the past month... they hit home runs! Ben Francisco hit a two run shot in the 2nd and Raul Ibanez lined a one run out to center field in the fourth. That would be all they would get off Rangers' starter C.J. Wilson, who struck out 10 over his seven innings of work.

With Halladay on the mound, it was all they would need. Halladay gave up six hits and two over his eight innings of work. He threw 81 of 116 pitches for strikes and lowered his season WHIP to under one. Ryan Madson came on in the ninth for his eight save. Curiously, the game ended when David Murphy was caught trying to steal second.

Cliff Lee will take hill tomorrow night against the team he helped lead to the World Series last season.